Thursday, September 22, 2011

Simple vs. Layered Scrapbook Layouts

There is something very calming and mechanical about the scrap book process for me. I'm drawn to pages that are simple as much as I'm drawn to highly stylized pages. There's room for both in my world.

Documenting memories artfully can be a challenge. A lot of times, we have so much information, that we don't know what to focus on.  If you sift through a stack of photos, look for one that pulls memories out of you and journal on a scrap piece of paper what you feel and think as a result. Look for a photo to use with that memory that is a captivating image. Good photography happens more in my house when I switch the digital camera to black and white or sepia. I'm not sure why this is true, but it is. Interestingly, a lot of the photos that pull out memories are snap shots that aren't necessarily "good quality" photos. Still, sometimes, they can be turned into art on a scrapbook page.  Here are a few that have made it into my scrapbooks.
Sometimes, the paper is fancy enough. Restraint is as important as the ability to embellish. Restraint is a good trait to practice in life as well as artwork. One can never retrieve words spoken in anger. They become a permanent record, playing in the mind of the hearers. When scrapping, it's good to keep in mind that one can always add to pages, but it's much more difficult to delete or take elements away.
With children this beautiful, and photos this incredible, it seems to make more sense to let the photography show off a little... On this sheet, I wanted to show an age progression from infancy to boyhood. It's remarkable how much of their original essence carries through as they grow.
Here's a more layered layout, but overall, it's still simple to pull off with the right tools.  {paper, Zig & Micron pens, photo adhesive, stickers, paper cutter} 
This photo is just one of countless first hugs every morning shared between mother and son. This particular photo is a pretty grainy snapshot from an instamatic camera, but it still has a magic that's captured. It has been cropped to keep the theme of the photo front and center. It is rare for me use a photo in it's original size in scrap art, as most need to be simplified so the eye rests on the subject of the photo.

I like to play with my papers by color groups and decide which patterns to use based solely on what looks best with the photo. Since this paper was the back side of the glittery post card paper in the first photo, it seemed fitting to carry the mat color through. Once I decided to pull the blue, orange and green through with the accent papers, the layout just evolved via playing with the puzzle pieces of paper.  After adhering each piece down, I rubbed Stazon inks on the paper to tie the color scheme together. {Stazon inks: cactus green, royal purple, timber brown}

Hug your children every chance you get. They need it. You need it.

3 comments:

Robin said...

Hi Deborah! I absolutely love your blog and your style. You share detailed and wonderful step by step tutorials of your projects. Thank you so much. The layering looks great and the pictures of hugs are priceless! I blogged about in my Shout-Out section at the end of my post today. You definitely shine girl! Keep it up and welcome to the blogging world!

Robin said...

Oops, I need to read what I post :) I meant to say that I blogged about YOU today in my Shout-Out at the end of my post today...have a wonderful day!

Domestic Empress by Design said...

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you for the feedback. Thank you for the shout out. Thank you for being an encourager.

Post a Comment

Thanks for commenting!